Extreme Nature: The Ultimate Reference to Amazing Facts and Extraordinary Superlatives from the Natural World

by Mark Carwardine

smelliest plant
best water-walker
longest migration
hairiest animal
best surfer
tiniest mammal
longest tongue
fastest swimmer
sharpest sense of smell
strangest society
hottest animal
flashiest males
slimiest animal
fastest digger
loudest bird call
slipperiest plant
stickiest skin
deadliest love-life
largest animal ever
oldest leaves
fattest carnivore
deepest-living animal
sleepiest animal

Genres: Nature, Science, Nonfiction, Biology, Natural History, Animals

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Mark Carwardine is a zoologist who achieved widespread recognition for his Last Chance to See conservation expeditions with Douglas Adams, first aired on BBC Radio 4 in 1990. Since then he has become a leading and outspoken conservationist, and a prolific broadcaster, columnist and photographer.

Reviews

[Melody · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. I won it in a competition when I was in grade 10 and I was fascinated, just reading it over and over again and looking at the incredible pictures. I still enjoy reading it 10 years later.

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my older books I was flipping through this morning, amazing photography on the various "extremes" in nature from creatures living at extreme depths to extreme pregnancies, to birds who spend an extreme amount of time on the wing. A really lovely book, one page for photos and the other page for description.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books that feels like it has been given to the interested reader but only as a table piece since of how big it is. As a result it is awkward to hold and carry around as you cannnot tuck it in a small bag or even a pocket for better mobility.

With that aside, though, it is one of the better "animal"-type books that I have had a chance to read about. Not only does it cover the normal animals that all the same books cover but it doesn't overlook the human creature as well. Plus throw in a few plants and you have what seems to be a well-rounded book that will help the reader to explore the natural world in all its various shapes and organisms.

Even for its size the book is rather short in a sense as each creature is dedicated a page or two. This page or pages provides the title award then a brief introduction where the common name of the creature, sometimes its Latin name, where it is from and information that provides evidence to the claim. From there a few paragraphs are given that gives more information not only about the named creature but also for others who may also qualify.

Which leads me to another beef with the book. Although it provided more animals to be looked at and included I didn't like the fact that the author would put a "rank" but the meander about various creatures that could also step in for the plate but only if "so-and-so was met" or "if you had only meant". In this case just make the example clear to the reader or include secondary finalists please.

The book also included plenty of bright colorful pictures for the reader to get to know the animal in question better. Unfortunately there were some illustrations where the animal wasn't clear enough but others were right on the mark.

In the end it is a good and decent book to bring some heavyweight creature contestants to the front. Although some titles may be changed in the future depending on new species found it will stand in pretty well for now.

[Christyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extreme Nature gives us a look at some of nature's "extremes". Broken down by categories into: Extreme Abilities, Extreme Movement, Extreme Growth and Extreme Families. Filled with a full-color, full-page (at least) photograph accompanied by what "extreme" it is (e.x. "Slimiest Animal") and a breakdown of the name, location, ability and description. It's fascinating and fun to read through. This is large coffee-table style book, which while not great for portability, is great for appreciating the detail and content of the book.

[Heydi Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this amazing book with phenomenal photographs. It has the smallest, biggest, etc. of everything in nature!!!! Love it!!!

[Mansour S منصور السدحان · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a couple of Carwardine's coulmns in BBC Wildlife magazine and I like it. So when I saw that this book was written by Mark I knew It'll be a fun read. Totally enjoyed it.

[Hiva · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's all about bizarre and out of ordinary creatures on our planet.

[YBx · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so colorful and beautiful. It's very informative and very enjoyable.